What is wrong with Draymond Green? Warriors big man needs to harness control on court

Since the start of the 2022-23 NBA season, Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green has been suspended four times.

On Wednesday, the NBA gave Green a rare indefinite suspension for his reckless and dangerous swing with his right arm that hit Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic in the face in Phoenix's 119-116 victory Tuesday.

The NBA could only take so much of Green’s transgressions, especially in such a compact timeframe, and determined he has a problem - with self-control and perhaps anger - that needs resolution. His inappropriate actions on the court were escalating and the league had to take a drastic measure for the sake of the game and the safety of other players.

Elite athletes have an ideal competitive mindset, high-performance psychologist Michael Gervais told USA TODAY Sports, and some mindsets are revved up and some are calm. Green plays revved, and “when you're on the edge in that way, that competitive fire is celebrated and it's a fine line between stepping over into an unbecoming competitive style as opposed to something that is valued,” Gervais said. “And when you are highly intense, there are challenges that come with that.”

Green has thrived on that tightrope for years - winning four NBA championships and the 2017 defensive player of the year award in the process - but now has crossed onto the wrong side too many times.

“He will be required to meet certain league and team conditions before he returns to play,” the NBA said in a news release.

While the NBA is not ready to list the terms of Green’s return, counseling and education assuredly will be part of it, just as it was for Kyrie Irving (after he spread antisemitic propaganda) and Ja Morant (after he waved handguns in public places) when they were suspended.

Consider Green’s recent history:

▶ He was not – but should’ve been – suspended for punching then-teammate Jordan Poole at practice in October 2022.

▶ He received his 16th technical foul – exceeding the limit for technicals allowed in a season and resulting in an automatic one-game suspension – in March for throwing the basketball at Russell Westbrook’s head.

▶ He stomped on the chest of Sacramento Kings center Domantas Sabonis in a playoff game and was suspended for Game 3 of the first-round series in April.

▶ Green served a five-game suspension last month for “escalating an on-court altercation and forcibly grabbing Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert around the neck in an unsportsmanlike and dangerous manner,” the NBA said.

“This is about more than basketball. It’s about helping Draymond," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Thursday. "It’s an opportunity for Draymond to step away and to make a change in his approach, in his life. That’s not an easy thing to do. That's not something you say 'OK, we're going to do five games, and then he’s going to be fine.' ...

"It's not just about an outburst on the court. This is about his life. This is about someone who I believe in, someone who I’ve known for a decade, who I love for his loyalty, his commitment, his passion, his love for his teammates, his friends, his family. Trying to help that guy. Because the one who choked Rudy, the one who took a wild flail at Jusuf, the one who punched Jordan last year, that’s the guy who has to change. And he knows that."

Elite athletes must master charged atmospheres

Before getting into the topic of controlling emotions, Gervais wanted to start with a general thought.

“We’re all going through something, and so we can't begin to be able to really guess at what's happening inside of another person,” he said.

Gervais is a best-selling author, host of the Finding Mastery podcast and worked with the Seattle Seahawks for nine seasons. He approaches elite athletes and their ability to perform in charged atmospheres with respect.

“It's easy to observe and critique, and it's harder to actually be in high-heated moments and navigate oneself with grace and artistic expression of a craft that is incredibly hard to do,” Gervais said. “Being in high-heat moments and being able to have a sense of grace and artistic mastery is incredibly rare. I always want to point and celebrate the athlete rather than be a critic.”

What can help Draymond Green?

There are mechanisms to help athletes deal with aggression, including breathing exercises and listening to your inner dialogue to help control emotions in intense situations. These mechanisms require practice and training like other skills.

“Mental training begins with awareness,” Gervais said. “Awareness of your body's activation, awareness of your inner dialogue. And when you're more aware of your thoughts and emotions, you're able to guide them more eloquently.”

Athletes are able to do that in those heated moments much of the time even though it can be difficult in competition.

“One of the most important psychological skills to build is the ability to be agile,” Gervais said. “And athletes are required to be agile in consequential high-pressured environments. So for you to be able to creatively solve the challenge at hand requires agility. And agility rests on your ability to be calm, to be confident, to have deep focus, to attend to the variables that you can control and let go of the variables that you cannot control.

“Breathing and self-talk are two skills which allow people to become more calm, more confident, have deep focus and optimism to allow them to be more agile in highly charged environments.”

Does Draymond Green want help?

Mitch Abrams is a sports psychologist and wrote “Anger Management in Sport: Understanding and Controlling Violence in Athletes.”

He distilled Green’s situation to a basic question. “The most important question you could ask anybody that you are working with is 'What do you want?' ” Abrams said. “He has to decide what he wants his legacy to be.”

Green could just go through the motions and continue playing like he does. Or he can change.

“The secret is you have to teach them to recognize changes in their cognition,” Abrams said. “If you are more interested in executing your opponent than executing the play, then you're too hot. You can’t be in the game. You can’t be so hot that problem-solving, decision-making, fine-motor coordination, vision, the ability to synthesize data and make quick decisions all goes (down the drain).”

Understanding what triggers inappropriate actions and knowing how to manage that can be learned through therapy and education.

“From here, it’s about empowering the athlete and telling them, 'If you want to be the best you can be, I can show you how to do that,' " Abrams said.

Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt